The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1887-06-11

| @AANAS9SAAoI~0AS VIZ
companionship which the Office forced
upon him. Concerning his fellow-as-
slstants he wrote: ''My nervous and
hypocho feelings almost verged
on insanity. [ seemed to myself to be
shut up in cavern with serpents and
scorpions and all hideous and mon
strous things, which writhed and hissed
around me and discharged their slime
and venom upon my person." This
looks very like the raving Of a wretch
| whose mind is unhlnged, but it was
while still engaged in the writer's
office that Mangan penned some of his
most beautiful and Characteristic eff
fusions.
1t is not my intention here to attempt
TO trace the after career Of the unhappy
poet. who in many dismal particulars
may be likened to Edgar Poe, Or even
to Chatterton Much that reasonable
jnquirers would care to learn concern
ing Mangan during his later years has
been told, and we'll told, in the columns
of the Irish Fireside for March II, 1887.
| would here simply note my recollec
tion of the man such as for a consider
able period used TO find him when we
were associated as colleagues On the
Typographical branch Of the Ordinance
Survey. Our Office was at q Great
Charles street. the residence of the late
Dr.. Petrie, who was at the time the re.
sponsible head Of that interesting de-
partment. The staff, it may be said.
comprised John O'Donovan afterwards
translator Of '"rhe Annals of the Four
Masters'), Eugene and Anthony
O'Curry, 2. O'Keeffs, I. O'Connor, G.
v. DUN Noyer, and the writer. Occasion
ally there used to be an assistant or
two. who remained but for q limited
time. OF the regular set, 2. O'Keeffe
and l myself are the only survivors;
We were supposod, when on home
duty. to meet daily in the office at 10 a.
m. All were usually punctual except
Mangan. who, as g rule: was late, would
not appear before II or 12 O'Clock, and
would not unfrequently be absent alto
gether. He had in Our room a large,
unpainted deal desk. about breast~high,
supported upon four legs; aud, to
match, an equally plain stool Or seat,
both being his own property, and Of his
own Introduction. Upon this Gesk,
when he worked at all, he would copy
documents as required. lie hadnothing
else to do, SO that his training as
scrivener made the task all the more
easy. At times he would be very dull
and silent, but occasionally he was apt
to make pu1ls and jokes. He generally
had some awful story OF q supernatural
character to tell as he was slipping his
tar-water. bottle Of which medicine
he always carried with him. Al the
time speak OF Mangan could not have
numbered more than IS or 36 years. yet
he was then physically worn out-aged,
in fact--as far as the body was con-
cerned. His mind, however, still Was
that of the poet, and he was inditiug
those soul-stirring verses published
then, aud afterwards,i in tue Irish Penny
Journal, the Dublin University Maga-
zine, and, believe, elsewhere Aged,
in body, I repeat. His hair had gone,
and given place to a very common.
looking, 1iax-colored wig, his teeth
were false and ill-htting set. as evi~
denced by the fact that their wearer
was ever fixing them with his fingers
lest they should fall from his gums; he
Possessed very weak eyes, and used a
huge pair of green spectacles: he had
narrow shoulders, and was hat-chested,
so much so That for appearance the
breast OF his coat was thickly padded.
Of course there was no muscular
strength; and his voice was low, sweet,
but very trenlulous. Few, perhaps,
could imagine, that so odd q figure
might represent a genius, and Mangan
himself did notappear TO care fig what
people thought of him. In fact he
seemed to court the reputation Of an
OuulGE. LID SOtLO w dO VI az 4AoC0oI1D"
able fashion, both in cut and color; it
appeared TO have been kind of drab.
Out of doors he wore tight little
cloak; and his nat exactly resembled
those which broomstick-riding witches
are usually represented with. Some
times, even III the most settled weather,
he might be seen parading the streets
with very voluminous umbrella un-
der each arm. The large, colored spec
tacles, always referred to, had the eff
feet of setting off his singularly wan
and wax-like countenance with as much
force as might be accomplished by the
contrast of color.
Such was the appearance Of Mangan
before his later self lf-abandonment. A |
time was to come when despite the
anxious watching and exhortation of
friends, lay and Ecclesiastical, Catholic
as we'll as Protestant, one of the bright
est lights of Irish literature was to pass
away. a victim to his own folly.
It is strange that genus of high or.
der should not unfrequently. be found
associated with temperament which |